Lowering bridge for vault entrances



Mum

Jan. 23, 1923.

J. HERMANN.

LOWERING Bmosa FOR VAULT ENTRANCES,

2 SHEETSSHEE'T l FILED JAN. 5, 1922.

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| lllll llr W. H I I I N HHHHT Lun . Jan. 23, 1923.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2 J HERMANN LOWERXNG BRIDGE FOR VAULT ENTRANCES.

FILED JAN. 5 I922.

i atented Jan. 23, lQEZB.

5F -E N p Ci it t t Q LOWEEING BRIDGE FOR VAULT ENTRANCES.

Application filed January 5, 1922. Serial No. 527,246.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN HERMANN, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented a new and useful Improvement in a Lowering Bridge for Vault Entrances, of which the following is a specification such as will enable those skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to vertically movable bridges or platforms to be used in the floors of banking rooms in front of vaults for permitting vault doors, which are usually set with their lower edges extending below the level oi? the floors of the vaults and banking rooms, to be swung open and shut, and a uniform floor level in trout of the vaults maintained in either of said open or shut positions of the doors. The thresholds and floors of vaults are generally arranged on the same levels as the main floors o'tthe banking rooms in which they are placed, in order that wheeled trucks, as well as patrons and attendants may pass readily in and out, and as the stepped construction of present day vault doors brings their lower edges below said floor levels it is evident that pits must be provided in the floors of the banking rooms tov allow the vault doors to be opened and shut. The vertically movable bridges or platforms contemplated by this invention are mounted in said pits and are adapted to be lowered .when the doors are to be opened or shut, and to be raised and secured at the. floorv levels -(:luring banking hours or when the doors are either open or closed.

It is the object of the present invention to provide an improved and simplified plat,- t'orm or bridge of this kind which may be easily raised or lowered, will move down to depressed position by gravity when released,

and may be raised and locked in its upper position by a single operating device. Subsidiary objects include thecounterbalancing of the platform or bridge and its supporting means so. that the downward movement of said platform or bridge will be gradual and without undue jarring as it comes to rest at its lowest level, theQconstruction of the device, as a unit so that it may be readily cratcd, shipped and installed, and the positive locking of bridge or platform in raised position instead of relying upon resilient means for actuating said locking devices as in prior constructions.

The invention will be first hereinafter de scribed in connection with the accompanying drawings, which constitute part of this specification, and then more'specifically delined in the claims at the end of the descrintion. i

in the accompanying drawings, wherein similar reference characters are used to designate corresponding parts throughout the several views v Figure l is a plan View of a platform or bridge constructed and mounted substantially in accordance with this invention, the threshold and door of a vault being shown 1n section with the latter in open position, and the supporting and locking means for said platform or bridge .beingcshown in brpken lines.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the platform and pit, the former being shown in raised position.

Figure 3 is a transverse vertical section of the parts in the same position as in Figure 1 and 2, and a Figure fl is a detailed view of the plat- .iorm raising and locking means.

In the drawings a indicates the banking room floor, Z) the vault'floor, 0 the level of the platform when in raised position. and (Z the level of said platform when in lowered position. The cutout contour of the plat form to clear the door it of the vault when open is indicated at 6, while the threshold or the vault is shown at 7. A walkway plate is shown in dotted lines in Figure l and in solid lines in Figure b, said plate being supported over said threshold in the plane of the vault floor and platform when the latter is raised as illustrated in Figure 3.

The pit in front of the vault door is preferably fitted with a metal lining 1 covering the bottom and wallsthereof andhavinr; ledges l at the sides on which supports 2 for transverse channels 3 are mounted. Said channels are properly spaced apart to support the rocker levers 4t, each of which is fn-lcrumed on a shaft 5 mountedin bearings 6 on one of said channels. The-levers 4 are i'ulcrumedintermediate oftheir ends and carry rollers-'1- 'on their outer ends to engage the under surface of theplatform 8, while the. inner ends of said levers are weighted, as at 32 to counterbalance the platform. Said platform 8 may be made of metal reinforced by angle bars 9, 10 and 11 and overlaid with linoleum or other suit able covering material 12.

The inner ends of the levers 4 are spaced slightly apart and between them extends a transverse lever 13 fulcrumed in a slotted bracket 1 1 supported on the ledge 1 in the pit near the threshold of the vault and having a crosshead 26 engaging trunnions 25 on said inner ends of the levers 1, whereby said levers at may be moved in unison with the lever 13. The free end of the lever 1.3 may have a weight 31 attached thereto as an additional means of counterbalancing the platform. In the upper edge of the free end of the lever 13 there is formed a cup or recess 16 to receive the lower end of an operating key-rod 15 which is inserted through a suitable opening in the platform when it is desired to raise the same. It will be understood that the platform 8 is so nearly balanced by the counterweights 32 and 31 on the levers 1 and 13, respectively, that little pressure, say about five or ten pounds, exerted on the free end of the'lever '13 by means of the key-rod 15, when the operator is not on said platform, is suflicient to raise the latter, and said platform is adapted to sink by gravity when released from raised to lowered position gradually and without undue jarring.

To lock the platform in raised position sliding latches or bolts 19, 20, 22 and 23 are carried under the platform and adapted to be simultaneously operated to engage mortises 2 1 in the upper edge of the lining of the pit. The latches 19 and 20 are swiveled to a disk 17 suitably journaled in the plat form and lying adjacent the under face thereof. Said disk 17 has a vertically extending angular aperture 21 through which the key-rod 15 is introduced to engage the recess or cup 16 in the free end of the lever 18, and Said key-rod has an angular portion 18 to engage said aperture 21 when the platform has been raised, whereby rotation of said key-rod at that time will throw the bolts or latches 19 and 20 into locking positions. The latches or bolts 22 and 23 are also actuated simultaneously with the latches or bolts 19 and 20 from the rotation of the disk 17 through the instrumentality of a slide-bar 3O guided on pins depending from the platform and engaging slots 29, said slide-bar being operatively connected to said latches or bolts 22 and 23 by bell-crank levers 27 and 28, respectively.

It will thus be seen that when it is desired to raise the platform the key-rod 15 is inserted through the aperture 21 in the disk 17, the end of said rod engaged with the recess or cup 16 in the free end of the lever 13, and slight pressure exerted on said rod while the operator stands off of said platform. As soon as the platform reaches the level of the banking room floor the angular portion 18 on said key-rod engages the an ular Walls of the aperture 21 in the disk 1 whereupon said key-rod may be rotated to throw the latches 19, 20, 22 and 23 to positively lock said platform in raised position. When it is desired to lower the platform it is only necessary to introduce the key-rod 15 into the aperture 21 until the angular portion 16 engages therewith, turn said rod and disk until the latches or bolts have been withdrawn from the inortises 24., and withdraw said key-rod, whereupon said platform will sink gradually and easily by gravity.

WVhile I have illustrated and described in detail but one form of my invention, I realize that modifications maybe made there in and I do not, therefore, intend to limit myself specifically to this embodiment. On the other hand, I desire to protect my invention broadly in whatever form its prin ciple may be utilized.

What I claim is:

1. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of means for counterbalancing said platform whereby the weight of the platform slightly exceeds that of the counterbalanc ing means, means for overcoming said excess in weight in order to raise the platforn'i, and means for locking said plat-form in raised position.

2. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of counterbalancing means therefor, the weight of the platform being slightly greater than that of said counterbalancing means, whereby said platform is adapted to move downward by gravity, means for overcoming said excess in weight in order to raise the platform, and means for locking said platform manually in raised position.

3. The combination wit-h a vertically movable platform of the character described, of counterbalancing means therefor, the weight of the platform being slightly greater than that of said counterbalancing means, whereby said platform is adapted to move downward by gravity, means for locking the platform in raised position, and means adapted to first overcome said excess in weight between the platform and counterbalancing means in order to raise the platform, and to subsequently actuate said lockmg means.

4. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of means for locking said platform in raised position, and means adapted to first raise the platform and to subsequently actuate said locking means.

5. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of

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counterbalancing levers arranged below the platform, there being an aperture in said platform, and detachable means to be introduced through said aperture for actuating said levers and moving the platform.

6. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of counterbaiancing means for the platform, there being a slight difference in the Weights of said platform and counterbalancing means, and means forovercoming said excess in weight in order to move the platform and for also looking and unlocking said platform in raised position.

7. The combination with vertically movable platform of the character described, of counter-balancing means for said platform, means for locking the platform in raised position, a rotatable disk having an angular aperture therein and operatively connected to said locking means, and a key-rod adapted to be introduced through said aperture in the disk for engaging said counterbalancing means in order to move the platform, said key-rod having an enlarged angular portion to engage with said aperture for actuating-the locking means.

8. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of counterbalancing means for said platform arranged below the same,means for locking the platform in raised position, there being an aperture in said platform, a rotatable disk having an angular aperture in line with the aperture in the platform and operatively connected to said locking means, and a key-rod adapted to be introduced through said apertures for engaging the counterbalancing means in order to move the platform, said key-rod having an enlarged angular portion to engage with the aperture in the disk for actuating the locking means.

9. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of

counterbalancing means for said platform, means for locking the platform in one position, said locking means havlng a rotatable ing means in order to move the platform,

' said key-rod having means for interconnecting with said rotatable member for turning the same and actuating said locking means.

10. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of a pair of oppositely extending counterbalancing levers engaging under the platform at their outer ends, another lever extending transversely of the first levers and between the inner ends thereof, and means of connection between said levers whereby movement of the transverse lever will move the other levers in unison for actuating the platform.

l 11. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of a pair of intermediately pivoted counterbalancing levers extending in opposite di rections and having their outer ends engag ing under the plat-form, another counterbalancing lever pivoted at one end and having operative connection with the inner ends of said first mentioned levers, and means to engage the last mentioned lever for actuating all of said levers in unison in order to move the platform.

12. The combination with a vertically movable platform of the character described, of a pair of intermediately pivoted counterbalancing levers extending in opposite di rections and having their outer ends engaging under the platform, a transverse lever having operative connection with the inner ends of said first mentioned levers, there being an opening in the platform and a recess in said transverse lever in line with said opening, and an operating rod adapted to be introduced throughsaid opening and engaged in said recess for actuating all the levers in unison and moving the platform.

San Francisco, California, December 30th, 1921.

JOHN HERMANN. 

